We Will Love Each Other In Time
by Ouat101
Summary: AU OQ. Inspired by the movie "In Time", where time is the currency and people stop aging at the age of 25.
1. Chapter 1

**I have an idea of where I want to take this so i guess we will see if/where I get there! It's my first piece of ff so hopefully you like it :)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own anything and any mistakes are mine.**

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She wakes up to an empty bed, expecting Robin to be laying there besides her. His side is cold; she sees water droplets on the wall of the shower. He must be in the other room; she thinks to herself. She turns to the right, Robin at least left the blinds closed so she could get some extra sleep. She pulls the thin blanket from her body and starts to walk towards the closed door in front of her, fixes her pajama pants that scrunched up her legs during the night. She opens the door, steps through and sees Robin. His back is turned to her, and is dressed for work already, stirring something that resembles breakfast on the stove.

"Good morning" says Marian, as she walks towards him and wraps her arms around his sturdy build, nuzzling her head in between his shoulder blades. He's too tall for her, but he seemed to never care. He always seemed to soothe her insecurities.

"The same to you, sleepy head" replies Robin, as he turns and kisses the top of her forehead. She smiles in response, leaning further into him. "I have to get going soon, today's my big day" he tells her with a grin.

"Big day?" her eyebrows scrunch in confusion at his words. She slightly pulls away. Was there something she forgot about?

"I wanted to surprise you. I'm getting promoted, love. Now we will have all the time in the world." He glances at his wrist that reads 00:16:23:13, 0 days, 16 hours, 23 minutes and 13 seconds left, just enough to get to work and back, and buy a few things needed for dinner.

"What? Robin congratulations! Why didn't you tell me sooner?" She says with a large smile.

"I thought I would tell you when I came home tonight. I was planning on meeting you at the bus stop and revealing all the time on my arm. Then I would transfer it all to you, my love." he glances at her wrist, just about 10 hours left. It had always been like this since they turned 25, living day by day, getting by with their minimum level jobs. They both never seemed to have enough to settle and get comfortable with their lives.

"Robin I -", her words get cut off when his lips gently press to hers. She can never get enough of him; they have dated for practically 8 years now.

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They had been together before their clocks started ticking. The day he turned 25, his wrist started to detract time. The years' worth of stored time that he was so used to seeing was rapidly decreasing. She remembers she had walked into their room, seeing him pressed in front of the mirror. "Am I really going to look like this for the rest of my life? I turned 25 today. My year of time is going out" he said, as he held out his wrist for her to see. Her eyes widened. This was the first wrist she had seen that did not have frozen time on it before. She took hold of his arm and gently ran her fingers across the ink. She then smiled and looked up at him and said "If you mean handsome, then yes, you'll look like the man I've loved for years now. This doesn't change anything between us Robin, it just means we have to be careful now". Two years later she had turned 25 as her wrist started to detract. Then she was the one in front of the mirror while Robin was the one soothing her fears. Now they both had used up their year, and had to depend on working to try and get any extra time to live. Technically he was 29, while she was 27, but age didn't matter anymore in this society, but to them they still quietly celebrated. Society was set up to keep the rich alive and the poor dead. Robin and Marian found themselves lucky to live the extra years that they had gotten.

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"But what promotion are you getting? I thought you said you weren't doing as well as you thought you were?"

"Marian it doesn't matter. Do you know what this means?" His eyes light up, his smile from cheek to cheek, as his hands cup her face, "We can finally settle down, move to New Greenwich, get out of this place and start a family! God we will live the live we have always wanted. We won't have to worry about time anymore!" He places his hands on her stomach "we will finally have enough to have children of our own".

"Robin-", again his lips crush to hers. His arms snake around her body, pressing them together. Her arms still around him, the food on the stove being ignored as there are more pressing matters.

"This is the beginning Marian, and the only way we can start is if you marry me"

"What?" Her eyes start to water, as her hands come back around towards her and cover her mouth. Meanwhile Robin stands there, and kisses her cheek.

He whispers in her ear, "Marry me, and let's finally live our life. I know I don't have a ring but -"

"Do you really think a ring matters to me? Yes, of course, I'll marry you Robin" she's the one to kiss him now. She bites his lower lip and kisses him again, her hands on his face, but it ends as he starts to turn off the stove and grabs his bag.

"If we don't stop making out I'll be late to work" he says while chuckling, "I have to go but I'll see you tonight at the bus stop okay? Don't push yourself too hard today at work but tonight we celebrate! Take an hour would you?" He states as he locks wrists with hers and tries to give her an hour of his, but she protests it, saying that "I have enough Robin, don't worry about it. I'll be home around 9:30 okay, I'll be fine".

"Well then you can at least eat what I made for you, love". With a kiss to her lips he grabs his keys and heads out the door.

She turns around, places what he made for breakfast on a disposable plate and starts eating, glances at her arm, realizing how little time she has, maybe she should have taken that extra hour. The seconds winding down, leading towards what everyone fears, where everything revolves around time. Anything you want to buy has a certain chunk of time attached to it. Coffee? 5 minutes. Dinner? 20 minutes, and so the list continues. Everything is bought with time, and everyone seems to never have enough. Marian finishes eating, changes, and heads for the bus stop to head to work, thinking about her fiancé and the life they will start together.

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 **I had to start somewhere and I figured it would be a good place to end here. I'm promising you this is an OQ story, as I try to mend my soul from A &E. Thanks :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything and all mistakes are mine.**

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Marian clocks in at the factory, smiling brightly. Her mind keeps replaying her morning. She can't wait for tonight. She can't wait to fall into Robin's embrace and melt hopelessly into his arms. It's then that he texts her "guess what?"

She bit her lip and jokingly replied "Let me guess, you just quit your job and are now living on the streets"

"Close, but no. Its official, I present to you the new lead detective of Dayton, Robin Locksley. I swear you won't ever have to work again. I'll be working directly under other detectives from New Greenwich now"

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"Papa? What is New Greenwich?" A 6 year old bright eyed Marian asked her father.

"It's another time zone Marian" her answered hesitantly. "Why do you ask?"

It's then that she hands over the photo to him with curiosity. "Why don't we live there, papa? It looks so nice! It's so green, there are trees everywhere! And the houses look so huge! What's that building papa?" She points to one of the large buildings in the center of the photo.

"Only the rich live there sweetie" he replied. "Everyone who lives there has decades of time to spend. They are known to live centuries, and live the life we all dream of. And that building is the Mills building. They are one of the wealthiest families in history. Some people say that they have generations of people who have lived for centuries that are still alive today. In fact, people are saying that the family is growing again. A new child is going to be born soon."

"But how did they get so much time? It's not fair papa!" Her father was astonished. She was so young but here she was asking all these questions about a time zone he isn't even sure how she found out about.

"Well Marian, they have so much time that they pass it down to their children. And their children's children. They own banks across the entire country." He pulls her into her lap, trying to explain everything to her curious mind.

She hesitantly looks up at him, "Do you think I will ever live there papa?

His heart hurts, he knows it will probably never happen. The people in Dayton are not paid enough to move time zones. It's practically unheard of. Not wanting to upset her, he said "You can do anything you set your mind to Marian. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

Of course, nothing sounded better than this perfectly presented place as she had replied "I am going to live there one day papa, I just know it!" She had taken the photo and fallen asleep with it in her hand later that night, dreaming about the day when she would call that place her home.

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And now it was actually going to happen, assuming everything was going to plan. She never actually thought it would happen. Ever since her father passed away, she had promised that she would work her way up an live there in honor of him.

"I can't wait to see you tonight Robin" she replied back.

"I'll see you tonight, love. 9:30, right?"

She really did find a keeper in Robin, "yes, now get back to work detective :)"

"Why are you all unicorns and rainbows Mar?" Her friend Ashley asked.

She put her phone away and looked up "Robin got promoted!" Her eyes started to water, her smile impossibly big.

"Oh my gosh Mar congratulations!"

She pulls her into a hug, and then they both head to the back to put their bags away.

"Ashley, he's a lead detective, we won't have to worry about time anymore!"

"I never thought this day would come Mar. I'm so happy for you two. I swear the day you get married I better be your Maid of Honor."

They had both laughed, "about that, he asked me to marry him. It came out of nowhere Ash, it's all happening so fast. I just need to get through this day and then we can properly celebrate."

"Holy cow Mar, everything's working out isn't it. Seriously, your life seems to be falling into place."

"I guess I should put in my resignation now should I?" It was the first time she honestly thought about it. She wasn't even sure if she should continue working after what Robin had just told her.

"I guess so, come on, let's go see if they have your paycheck for last month." Ashley said as she took her best friends hand.

They walk across the building and approach the window. "Good morning Mary", they had big said simultaneously. "Hey you two! What are you doing here?"

Ashley leaned towards the counter and said "we came to get her paycheck for last month."

"I'm sorry, didn't you hear? There's a hold from corporate, we won't get them until next week."

Marians eyes widened "but how am I supposed to get through the week? I'm not even sure I'll be in Dayton still next week!" Shes down to a couple of hours when she looks at her wrist.

"I'm sorry Mar, there's nothing I can do right now. Why do you need it so soon? Did something happen?" She sounds concerned, assuming the worst. Her voice slightly rises hoping that isn't the case.

"Mary, Robin got promoted. I'm going to talk with him tonight about what's going to happen next and whether I should continue working. We want to start our family, and I'm not sure if working will be the best idea"

"Whatever you end up doing, I'll always be here for you, you know that. now get back to work before James comes through. He didn't seem happy this morning. You don't want him docking your pay now do you?"

Marian mouthed a thank you and she and Ashley returned to their stations.

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 **I hope you liked it**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything and all mistakes are mine**

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Later that night.

Robin walks out of the office, with over 10 years' worth of time ticking away at his wrist. A small bonus, actually, because the rich usually receive 50 year increment bonuses of time. He looks up at the stars and thinks to himself, "this is it Marian, we finally made it". He gets on the bus and pays the fare, be he can honestly afford his own car now. He should have an hour before the grocery store closes. He grabs flowers, some champagne, ingredients for dinner, and splurges 30 hours on a ring that screamed Marian as soon as he saw it sitting in the glass case. He's never spent this much time on something before, practically an entire day on one little object, an object of love, but he tells himself that she is worth it, and they can afford it now. Now that he is working his way up the high government ladder.

He remembers when he first started, just a simple cop processing files, but now he's finally hitting it big, leading investigations about murders and robberies across town. Promoted to lead detective, his current case revolving around the Minutemen stealing time from other people. It's the same every time, a dark alley, a trampled body, and a wrist that reads a grey 00:00:00:00 - their time has been stolen and now they are gone.

It rolls around to 8pm, Marian should be back around 9:30, so he has enough time to go back to his apartment and change before he surprises her and properly proposes like he should have done in the first place.

9:15 arrives quickly enough as a suit-wearing Robin double checks everything in the apartment. The champagne is chilling, dinner is cooked, the lights are down low, everything is perfect, and he can't wait for Marian to see it. He heads out of their apartment towards the bus stop and rushes down the stairs with the flowers he bought in his hands. He steps out onto the dim street and turns to the bus that is just pulling up.

One by one people come out, as Robin searches for Marian, looking forward to her reaction when she sees the flowers, but then people stop coming out of the bus and Robin's brows scrunch together. He approaches the bus, looking at the faces of those around him to see if he had somehow missed her. Everything seems to slow down, defies everything he knows because time seems to move too quickly around here. He doesn't see her on the street, so he climbs aboard and sees if perhaps she fell asleep and therefore did not get off, but unfortunately, she is nowhere to be seen. She should be on that bus - she has to be on that bus but she isn't here. Her work is 20 miles from here. She would never make it by foot. She isn't the type of person to be late, in fact ever since he met her, he learned that she was punctual to everything. His face pales as he pulls out the only photo of her, a photo taken during her 25th birthday when they had celebrated back at the apartment.

He shows the driver and asks if she got on. Unfortunately, the driver tells him that "you just missed her, she got off about 5 miles back, she didn't have enough to reach this stop". Robin's heart drops to his stomach. Angrily, he asks "and there was nothing you could do? You couldn't have let her at least ride to the last stop! She could have been attacked! Something could have happened to her!" his arms waves in the air, demonstrating his anger. The driver looks up and him and ignorantly says "I don't make the rules here bud. She couldn't pay the fare, so she couldn't ride the bus". Robin blatantly turns around and steps off the bus, turning towards her work and hoping for a miracle.

1 hour ago

Marian leaves the factory, glancing at her wrist, 00:01:05:34, 1 hour, 5 minutes and 34 seconds glowing bright green. She has a couple minutes to catch the bus and make it back home, back to Robin, with 45 minutes to spare. She's about to wait for the bus when she realizes that she left her phone in the back room of the office. Does it matter anyways; she thinks? She doesn't even know how much battery life it has left. She turns around and gets it anyways, she doesn't want someone stealing it at work and the bus isn't even here yet. She has to be careful for the Minutemen, who try to steal anything worth any value of time, but importantly, stealing time itself. By the time she grabs her phone, she gets pulled into a side conversation with Mary and realizes that she has 30 minutes left on her arm, and she really, really needs to get going. She runs outside, and luckily the bus is still at the stop waiting.

The sun has practically set, the streets are dim, save for the few streetlights that adorn the road, slight wind passing through, everything seems still and tranquil for a Friday night. She gets on, but the driver asks for double the fare as usual. Normally it's 17 minutes, but today, it's 34. She doesn't have enough time to get back to Robin.

A young lady sitting towards the front of the bus offers to help cover her fare. Marian kindly smiles and says "Thank you so much, you don't know how much this means to me".

"Don't worry about it, I have a time bank to share, although I'm not quite sure what's on it. if it were me in your position I would hope someone would help me too."

Marian gladly uses the time bank- which has 8 minutes- and then places her hand on the sensor, twists her wrist and sees the time detract from her total. She doesn't have enough to get to her apartment, but she thinks she can reach the apartment if she runs. She takes a seat, and turns towards the lady who so kindly helped her, "thank you so much again, but I wish there was something I could do for you in return. I'm Mar- Martha, I'm Martha by the way" she reaches out to shake her hand but doesn't reveal her name. She doesn't know who she can trust at this late of an hour.

The lady offers her hand in return "I'm Regina, and don't worry about it, seriously" she says as they both laugh. Regina asks her "where are you headed to? It looks like you are in a rush".

"Back home, back to my fiancé, he has really good news and I can't wait to see him. He kind of rushed out this morning and I didn't get to properly congratulate him" says Marian as she smiles and thinks about his proposal this morning.

Regina wishes she could freely do the same. "The way you are smiling makes see how much in love you are with him."

"Yes, he is the love of my life, 8 years strong now, and we can't wait to start the next chapter in our lives" Marian says as she subconsciously places her hand on her stomach.

"Ah, I feel the same about my boyfriend. Although we haven't been together as long as you have been. We've been together for 3 years now, in fact today is his 26th birthday. I would give him some of my time, but it's still frozen" she says as she shows Marian her wrist that reads 365:00:00:00. "I just turned 21, it's really weird. Speaking of the next chapter, my boyfriend and I are hoping for just that one day. A fresh start. I'm headed to his place now, but I usually don't take the bus, I'm not from here." She leans in and whispers "please don't tell anyone, I'm from New Greenwich but my family doesn't know we are together. My mother wouldn't approve of me dating someone who lives in Dayton, and I don't want to find out her reaction anytime soon."

Her eyes widen "you are from new Greenwich? What is it like?"

"Um it's okay. Time isn't an issue, few people are truly happy. Everyone is concerned about how much time they can't get their hands on, not about the memories they are making. It gets boring, the same things over and over again. Sometimes I wonder how my family entertains themselves after living for so long. But there's only one person who has made me realize this. The only thing that makes me truly happy is my boyfriend. He accepts me for me, no matter where I come from or how much time I have. It's why I love him so much."

Regina notices Marian's hand on her stomach, and shyly says "My boyfriend and I plan on having a large family one day, what about you? Do you have any children?"

Marian chuckles softly, "no, not yet, but I want kids, we want kids. The timing has never been right. We didn't feel comfortable with the time we had and how much we wanted to give our children. But now things are starting to align and we are so excited to start our family. My father always told me that I could do anything I put my mind to. I really hope you do the same thing to reach your happiness. I am sure that one day your family will accept whoever who love" Marian replies.

Regina takes her words to heart and smiles back towards her.

With that she realizes that she should tell Robin to meet her at a closer stop. "I've got to call my fiancé, but it was really nice talking with you Regina. I hope to see you again so I can repay you."

"Please, Martha you said your name was?" She nods, "well then Martha, don't worry about it. Tell your fiancé that it's a gift for your new fresh start."

"Thank you, so much" as Marian places her hand over Regina's and gives a tight squeeze before turning to her own bag to pull out her phone.


	4. Chapter 4

**(I updated this earlier but something happened. So i'm re-uploading it)**

 **Another chapter? Okay great! But on that note, i'm sorry...**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own anything and all mistakes are mine**

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She takes out her phone and tries to turn on the screen but its dead - of course it's dead. She tries to restart it hoping that maybe there is some ounce of battery remaining to send a quick text. Fortunately, it decides to turn on, with less than 1% left. She quickly sends a message to Robin saying "Getting off bus early, out of time, help. -M", and just as it sends, the phone turns off.

Now she is getting worried, with practically no time, she hasn't realized how deep of a hole she is in. Regina had thankfully distracted her but now it is all hitting her hard. She tries to turn on the phone again but has no luck. She turns to ask the lady, no, Regina, to ask Regina if she can use her phone to actually make a call, but she isn't there anymore. 10 miles later and she is evicted from the bus.

"Please sir," she tries to tell the driver "please let me ride to the last stop, it's only another 5 miles."

"I'm sorry, I don't make the rules," he says with a shrug, "you don't have the time, you don't have a ride". She glances at her wrist, she has less than 7 minutes left. She turns around to see if perhaps Regina moved seats, but she isn't there and must have gotten off while she was looking at her phone. So she leaves the bus and does the first thing that comes to her mind, she runs.

He calls her phone, but when was the last time she charged it, he can't remember, too many things are on his mind, she is on his mind. He notices a text from her and reads it as he starts running down the street where the bus arrived from. It was sent 5 minutes ago, and he silently curses himself for not seeing it sooner. He thinks back to the last time he saw her, she had a little less than 8 hours left, but that was, no, no no no no. That was about 7 and a half hours ago. It's then that he breaks into full sprint. Sweat pouring down his face, looking ahead at the dimly lit street, thinking of how wrong this night has turned.

He's about 3 miles in, he doesn't even know how fast he's running, he just knows that he needs to get to her, before it's too late. He looks around him, he hasn't passed by her yet so he knows that she has to be somewhere in front of him. It's not a good neighborhood, trash litters the ground, dogs are barking in the alley besides him. He knows that it's a bad area, it's where he lives, but it was what they could afford at the time. He has too much time on his hands to be out this late, there could be Minutemen lurking in the shadows just waiting for someone to attack. He sends a silent prayer hoping they don't do anything to him, let alone his Marian.

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Marian looks at her wrist, a minute left, when she sees a man running towards her in the distance. She stumbles a bit, and tries to focus on whether she should run faster or run away. "Robin?" She says under her breath, and realizes that it's him. She picks up speed, dropping her belongings and reaches out to him, hoping to make the connection so he can transfer seconds, minutes, hours, anything, to her. She screams his name, "ROBIN", hoping he can hear her. "ROBIN! ROBIN HELP!"

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Robin sees a woman almost fall, not sure if it's her or not, but he hears his voice being called, and runs faster than he has before. "MARIAN, IM COMING, I'VE GOT YOU" he says as drops the flowers he was holding to try to run any faster than he already is. His arm is outstretched towards her, trying to get as close as possible to her. Seconds are winding down, they get closer and closer, both of their arms stretched out to each other.

Robin has silent tears running down his face, trying to stop his bottom lip from quivering, meanwhile Marian is practically sobbing, trying to reach him. At last she jumps into his arms, while screaming his name once more. Robin catches her and they both fall to the ground as he twists their arms together.

He pulls her back from his grasp to look at her, but his heart shatters. No time is transferring, her wrist reads 00:00:00:00, no longer a glowing green, but a dull, matte grey. Her head lulls back, her eyes wide open staring at the stars above. Her arms slacked out to the sides. She's out of time; He was too late. Robin frantically tries to give his endless supply of time to her, keeps twisting their wrists but it's not working, she's gone. His head falls back as he lets out a gut wrenching scream.

He is sobbing as he cradles her close to him, pressing his head into the crook of her neck, attempting to hear a heartbeat, but he knows it's too late. She's gone, a life taken too soon. Tonight was supposed to be the beginning of their life together.

"Marian please-" "-please come back to me, please I can't-, I can't live without you." "I, I lov-, I love you" he says in between sobs. He presses a chaste kiss to her lips, but she's cold. How is she so cold already? he asks himself.

He doesn't know how long he lays in the middle of the empty street with her in his arms, he doesn't know how many times he begs for her to come back, he doesn't know how many times he says please.

But it doesn't matter because his fiancé has just died within his grasp.

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 **Like I said, i'm sorry, but I mean it had to happen :/ It's the shortest chapter so far, but I think the future ones I have written are longer. Anyways, thanks again for reading!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Well, it seems that I can't stop writing. So here is a super long chapter!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own anything and all mistakes are mine**

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2 years later

"Regina? Regina get down here this instant!"

"What mother?" she says unexcitedly as she exits her wing of the mansion and heads down the front stairwell.

"You know just because you are 23 does not mean that you get to treat me with this childish attitude of yours!" says Cora as she stands with her arms folded.

"Mother I have 2 jobs-"

Cora cuts her off, "2 jobs. You act like that matters. You may work with our family at the bank, but your other job is worthless. You have a reputation to uphold here, we are Mills, we are expected for greatness." she says with urgency.

Of course she wouldn't tell her mother that her second 'job' was just an excuse to see Daniel. That's the only way she could justify going to Dayton weekly. Trying to defend herself she continues saying, "I have an education too, yet you still keep me trapped here like, like I'm a child!" Her hands fly from her body, as her shoulders shrug up in defiance.

"The day you turn 25 is the day that you will officially be responsible for yourself. Of course I'll make sure you are married off before then, but as of now, you live here, under my rules. Do you understand me?"

Regina shrugs and looks towards the stairs besides her, just waiting to go back to her room so she can call Daniel. Oh Daniel, all she wants to do is move away with him, change her name and remove herself from her mother.

"Regina I asked you a question" she pesters again.

"Yes mother, I understand"

"Good, now get ready, I set up another date for you with Leopold. You've been together for quite a while now, 2 and a half years, isn't it? Once you marry him, you'll be so powerful, dear, let's hope that you don't' screw this one up too. There is talk that he plans to propose soon, you know that I'm running out of options for us!" Cora says, emphasizing her last sentence.

"Us? Mother he is 85 years old! I know his wife was murdered practically 30 years ago, but that doesn't justify why he needs to marry someone as young as me. He already has a daughter that is about my age!" she shouts, her voice raising in annoyance.

"Regina you know age doesn't matter. He stopped aging at 25, just like everyone else does. Besides his daughter has moved away, even changed her name. No one knows where she is". Regina thinks to herself how she wishes she could do the same. "He needs a new wife, he is expected to have one, especially because he is the head of Blanchard Company; Not like his daughter, who ran away years ago. Can you imagine? What if you had his child! A Mills and Blanchard heir?, Our families would merge and become the most powerful in the country!"

"Mother why do you keep doing this! This isn't our life, it's mine! I don't want this. I don't want to be with someone just because they need some eye candy!" It's then that Regina feels the cold hand of her mother's striking her face. She flinches back and grasps her cheek.

Cora eyes widen at her daughters words. She angrily says "You will do as I say, Regina! I have connections that you wouldn't believe of, dear. Now get ready, he will be here in a couple of hours, and I expect you to be on your best behavior." As if that wasn't enough, Cora reminds her, "You are my only daughter. You are the one that is going to keep the Mills legacy continuing."

Regina's eyes glare into her mother's. Her voice flat, coming out harsh and cold "You act as if you are a Mills! I'm a mills daughter, not you mother! You don't even have a blood tie to any of this!" her hands gesture to everything around her. "So I should be able to decide what happens with our legacy, my legacy for crying out loud! Not you, not someone who got lucky enough to marry into the family!" . Cora's hand strikes her in the same place once again, as Regina takes a step back, tripping on the stairs and falling down backwards. She looks up fearfully, placing one hand on her cheek and holding out the other to try and stop the next retaliation that never comes.

Cora take two steps forward so that she is towering over her daughter. "Don't you ever! Talk to me, like that, ever. Again. Now get back upstairs before I make you look so unpresentable that I'll have to cancel your date."

Regina quickly stands and runs up the stairs, trying to keep the tears in her eyes at bay. She closes the double doors behind her, wiping the stray tear that falls down her porcelain cheek. She quickly grabs her cell phone and dials Daniel's phone number, waiting for him to pick up.

"Hey beautiful" Daniel says with a wide grin.

"Daniel I can't do this anymore" she says weakly as she curls up into her large bed.

"Regina what happened, what do you mean?"

"Daniel I just want to be happy. I want to be with you, only you, but here I'm trapped under her lock and key."

"It will get better when I see you tonight. I can't wait to celebrate my birthday with you. I'm getting old you know" he says jokingly, "already 28, where has the time gone."

"Daniel I'm sorry, she did it again. She set up another date with Leopold. I swear she is selling me like I am a piece of meat. She doesn't think of me as her daughter, she thinks of me as just another pawn to continue the family blood line."

"Regina I'm going to figure something out. I'll get you out of there I promise you".

She starts panicking and says "Daniel if she finds out, she won't just hurt me, she'll do something to you and I can't do that! I can't let-"

"Don't worry, she won't find out. What time is your mother leaving tonight?" He's trying to calm her, he knows she'll get a panic attack if she starts overthinking again.

"I think she's leaving in a couple of minutes, but she's coming in an hour and a half to make sure I look presentable for my date."

"Regina what if you were to leave tonight?

"What? Daniel that's crazy! She'll-".

"Babe move in with me, you already have some of your things here, so why not bring the rest? I know it's not New Greenwich but I can't stand to see you so upset. I want to see you happy Regina, so come be happy with me."

Regina stays quiet as she considers if she would follow through with his plan.

"Regina are you still there?" He really hopes that she will agree. He wants to take this next step with her, he has been hoping for this for months now, just waiting for the right time to ask.

Barely audible she replies "I'm sorry Daniel, I can't. I can't leave my father, I can't leave Nana, I can't leave the few people in my family who actually love me. Whatever I do she'll find me, she'll find us. Oh my gosh I'm never going to be happy, I'm never going to get out of here, I'm-." She continues to ramble over the phone.

"Regina, I need you to breathe. It's going to be okay, please calm down for me. Regina, whatever you want to do then I am on board. I love you, I support you, you know that right?"

She takes a couple deep breaths before saying "Yes Daniel, I love you too. I'll see you tomorrow. I'll meet you at your apartment and make sure that you have 2 weeks worth of time? You have enough to make it to tomorrow?"

"Yes, I still have over 72 hours, now go to bed early for me, alright?"

She ends the phone call, thinking about their plans together.

Little did she know that Cora was standing outside her door, listening to her conversation the entire time. She pulls out her phone, send a message to her contacts, asking for a list of all the Daniels in Dayton. Why would you get yourself involved with Dayton, idiot child. I am going to guarantee your proposal to Leo and not this peasant.

* * *

Regina stands from the bed to charge her phone. She hears a knock at the door a couple minutes later, revealing Celia, her personal maid, holding a large navy ball gown.

"I'm sorry to intrude Miss Regina, but your mother had me deliver your dress for tonight." She doesn't look up into Regina's eyes, something she hadn't done on Regina's behalf ever since she turned 15.

"Thank you, you may hang it of the door of my closet." Celia quickly leaves without another word.

Regina walks up to it, she hasn't seen something this detailed in a while especially for a dinner date. She isn't quite sure why her mother is going all out for Leopold. He isn't anything special, there's no reason in her mind to dress fancy when she knows that this date isn't going to lead anywhere.

She decides to curl her hair, so she enters the bathroom and closes the door. She sits down at her vanity when she notices the large bruise swelling on her cheek. She doesn't hear when her great grandmother knocks on the door and enters.

Ella walks in, looks around the large room and doesn't see her anywhere "Regina? Are you in here?"

Regina flinches and looks towards the closed bathroom door. _Nana? Is it really you?_ "I'm coming!" She opens the door and runs into her arms.

"Hello sweetie" she says kindly as she reciprocates the hug and sits down with her on the edge of the bed.

Regina looks away towards the window to hide her cheek and softly replies "I've missed you, you've been away for so long, almost a month." She's always had this kindness towards others, something that her mother never understood.

She sits on the bed to the left of Regina, "Oh Little One, I missed you too, my business trip took longer than usual, I was getting concerned about you. But Regina, did you really think I didn't hear what just transpired out there? I heard your mother yelling. I had hoped that the past month things would have changed between the two of you!"

"No Nana, she is still forcing me to see Leopold. I have another date with him tonight" she sadly says, still looking the other way.

"Why don't I help you get ready for your date? Your mother probably wants you to look extra special tonight if she brought that dress." She nods towards the one hanging on the closet door. "You know how she is, always striving for perfection."

Regina stares at the wall ahead of her and whispers "But I don't love Leopold, I don't want to marry him, I don't want my children to bear his name, actually I don't want to bear his children at all, and I especially don't want to be tied to him for the rest of my life."

She gently places her right hand beneath Regina's chin and tries to guide it up so she can look at her great granddaughter in the eyes. Regina flinches at her touch, not wanting her Nana to see her cheek.

"What's the matter, little one?" She removes her hand and places it on the opposite side of her face. She applies more pressure to turn her head, but Regina scrunches her eyes shut and stifles a painful moan. Regina brings her hand towards her cheek and turns further away.

Her Nana assures her "you can trust me, I can protect you, just like I did a year ago when-." She gets cut off when Regina whispers "please Nana, please don't remind me of that terrible terrible day." Regina slowly drops her hand and turns towards her.

Ella sees that her cheek is darkly bruised and slightly swelled. A soft gasp escapes her as she lightly guides her left hand over the tender skin. "Oh Regina…" She takes her right and cradles her unbruised cheek. She hesitantly asks, "did she do this to you, little one?"

Regina softly says "it hasn't been the first time". Ella's eyes widen. "I usually cover it up before anyone sees". Ella then pulls her in for a tight hug, as Regina gratefully accepts it.

Ella says "I never liked your mother. I never wanted my grandson to marry her, but alas he did anyways. I guess it was my fault, my own son arranged the marriage." She takes her hands and rubs them up and down Regina's back, trying to soothe her.

Regina curls her knees into her chest and quietly asks "Did you ever fall in love Nana?"

Ella chuckles and replies, "yes, in fact I married my true love. I was lucky that my arranged marriage was to one that I had secretly dated over the years. A Mills man, I didn't realize how important he was until we were engaged. We were married for 50 years before we had our first child. There was no rush, not with the centuries of time that were given to us by our parents. Then we had our second child, your grandfather, who then had your father. You couldn't imagine how happy I was when your father told me they were expecting a child. 7 months later you entered the world, a beautiful baby girl, the first in over 20 generations!" Regina smiles, feeling special by her Nana's words.

Ella's tone changes, getting more serious, "But your mother wasn't happy, she wanted a boy, one who could maintain the family name. She was certain she was going to have a boy and when she didn't, she detached herself from you and has remained that way ever since you were born. That was the day when my suspicions regarding your mother were confirmed."

Regina listens to these words for the first time, realizing that her mother considers her more of a burden than a daughter, a daughter she never wanted. A traitorous tear escapes her, as she looks up at Ella, who simultaneously looks down at her.

"No matter what she thinks of you, I love you Regina, you are the daughter I never had, but the one I've always wanted. You'll always have me, no matter what."

Ella continues to rub her back and questions "Why do you ask about love, little one?"

Regina nods her head and doesn't say anything. Ella then says shyly "I'm guessing there is someone else who has your heart?" As if she already knows.

Regina nods her head and says defeatedly "there's only one person who I love, who loves me too, but mother will never approve of. He lives in Dayton, he's the love of my life but it will never happen. "If we end up together, mother will find out, she always finds out. She'll do something, I just know it and I can't let-" her words become inaudible, leaning further into her Nana's embrace.

Ella's eyes widen as she pieces everything together, she has always been good at doing that "It wasn't his was it, it wasn't Leopold's when I found you-" she stops talking, figuring everything out. "My strong girl, my strong, strong girl. I'm sorry little one, I am so sorry. I didn't understand until now, I wish I could have soothed you then" Ella tries to comfort her great granddaughter who remains still under her touch.

"It was so hard Nana, not being able to tell anyone." She wipes another tear that falls down Regina's face. "My strong girl," she whispers again. "Come on, Let's get you cleaned up before your mother walks in here questioning why you aren't ready."

After Ella carefully covers up Regina's cheek with makeup, she curls her hair, twists it up and pins it. She lightly squeezes her shoulders and tells her she can change into her dress. Regina looks at the dress, a strapless number. It's a gorgeous dress, she just doesn't want to wear it for Leopold, she would rather wear it for Daniel. The bodice is a solid dark blue organza with pearls lining the top. Then the gown falls from the waist down all around her with the same material gently sweeping the floor. There are little silver gems scattered in the train of the gown too. She has her Nana help her into the dress, then has her lace up the back. She steps back and lets Regina see herself in the mirror.

"You love beautiful Regina, absolutely lovely" she says proudly.

"I love you Nana, so much. I don't know what I would do without you" she says.

"Hey now, I'm here, that's all that matters." She pulls her into a gentle hug, and that's how Cora finds them when she bursts into the room.

She sees them in a tight embrace and her face instantly scowls. "Regina isn't a child that needs consoling Ella. Leo is downstairs already, you need to go now Regina, and don't mess it up" Cora says as they jump apart. She looks at Regina's completed look and says "I guess it will have to do, although I thought it would have looked better on you." Regina tries to keep a straight face and then leaves the room looking back to her Nana with wide fearful eyes, who gives her small smile and mouths "stay strong", before leaving the two of them alone.

"I'd appreciate if you left the parenting to me, Ella." Cora sternly says.

"I'm sorry for overstepping, I just hadn't seen her in so long. You know she just wants to be happy right? Pushing her like this isn't going to do that. She isn't even 25 yet but you treat her like she's 10."

Cora tries to not let her jaw drop as she replies "that's what I am doing, I'm making her happy. She just hasn't realized it yet."

Although Ella has more seniority than Cora, practically 120 years, she nods sheepishly and leaves the room without further protest.

* * *

 **Let me know what you think, it really helps when i edit the next chapters.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry for not updating sooner, I had finals for college that kept me pretty occupuied. But now I'm done! I'm not too happy with this chapter but you deserve something after the wait.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own anything and all mistakes are mine.**

* * *

Regina returns 5 hours later. Leopold had swiftly taken her out to dinner, they made small talk (she hated small talk), and he returned her back home before 10pm. She approaches the front door and quietly opens the door. Peeking in, the coast is clear, as she lightly presses her feet to the ground, one step in front of the other. She walks through the lit hallway and turns towards the main stairwell hoping that no one is awake. her mother can be heard on the phone in the foyer "Did you find him?" A couple seconds pass before she sternly replies "Great work as always, Gold."

Regina hopes that her mother will continue talking on the phone, she just wants to get out of this dress and lay in bed. She successfully gets halfway up the stairs when her mother sternly calls out "Regina, you know better than to go up without telling me what happened. Get over here". Her face grimaces as she listens to her mother yell out for her. She turns around unceremoniously and heads to the foyer where her mother sits reading the latest news report for New Greenwich.

Her face rises from the article, her mouth taught, Let me see your hand." she demands instantly.

Regina complies, holding out her left hand, not quite sure what her mother is doing. "Regina would you like to tell me why there is not an engagement ring on your finger?"

Feeling invaded, she ignorantly replies "Because he did not propose mother", accompanied with an eye roll

Cora drops her daughter's hand from hers and looks up at her and asks disgustedly "Why not"

She tiredly replies "I don't know mother, he probably doesn't want to yet." and neither do I, mother.

"I think there's more to it Regina. You need to be nicer, flirt with him more, we need this. We need you to marry soon, you aren't getting any younger!"

"And neither is he!" Regina adds as her hands fly from her body.

Cora sit unamused, quickly glancing at the paper in her hands before her gaze slowly rises back to Regina "What did you do with Leopold tonight?"

"He took me out to dinner, and he brought me back here, that it."

"Nothing else happened?"

"No. Nothing else, that's it."

Cora stands from the chair and motions the butler to tend the fire for her. She turns back around with her hands crossed in front of her "when are you seeing each other again?"

"Mother I'm tired, can I please go up now?" She whines.

"Not until you answer my questions, daughter."

"We didn't plan another date" she says as she shuffles uncomfortably, looking away towards the stairs.

"Regina do I have to do everything for you! Why can't you just be a good daughter? I'll have to call him tomorrow and set something up." She waves her hand for Regina to leave, as she returns back to her article, which seems to be more entertaining at the moment.

When Regina heads back towards her room, she heads straight for the bathroom to take off her dress. The entire time she replays the same thoughts over and over again: I don't want this, I don't want to be here. She eventually unlaces the dress and leaves it in a heap in the middle of the bathroom. She has unpinned her long hair as it cascades down her back in loose waves. Regina leaves the bathroom dressed in silk shorts and a silk camisole to find her Nana sitting on her bed with a cloth in her hand. As soon as Regina sees her, she runs over and draws her arms around her in a fierce hug.

"don't worry, I'm here now." Ella motions her to lie down on the bed and starts to remove her makeup. "What happened tonight?"

Regina nods, and tells her all of the boring things that happened. How they went to a restaurant, talked (occasionally), it was mostly him bragging on about his company, as she would respectfully nod. She winces every time Ella passes over her bruised cheek but soon enough Regina feels the cloth being removed. The swelling has gone down tremendously, she opens her eyes and sees her Nana opening a small container.

"tell me about your true love, little one." with those words Regina's mood shifts completely and smiles brightly.

"His name is Daniel, and it's his 28th birthday tomorrow. I met him 6 years ago, but we've been together for 5 of them. We dream of moving to another time zone, getting married, having kids, and living forever together. I know it's crazy, but someone once told me that I can do anything I put my mind to, so I dream so I can escape from this nightmare. I never thought I could love someone so much, but every time I'm with him, or even when I think of him I can't stop smiling. I've fallen so hard for him Nana."

"He sounds lovely, little one. When are you planning on seeing him next?" She starts to apply a cream to her bruise to help it heal faster. "sorry, this may hurt but it's going to feel so much better once I'm done applying it."

"I'm seeing him tomorrow, I'm so excited. I'm going to take the bus to his apartment and we'll hang out there. When it's just us, we don't need to go anywhere, we are perfectly happy in just each other's company. You wouldn't believe Dayton, Nana! Everyone is always doing something, there's an exciting buzz in the air, and people live in the moment. It's fantastic." She breathlessly says.

"Are you all packed?" Ella closes the jar and sets it on the bedside table.

"No not yet, wait why?" She sits up from the bed, brows scrunched together.

Ella grabs her hand and asks "why don't we go right now and surprise him? I'll drive, we don't need to summon someone to take us. Besides, I would like to meet the man that is making my girl so happy."

Regina throws herself into her Nana's arms. "you would really do that for me?"

Ella cusps her hand on the back of Regina's head and puts the other one on the small her back "of course little one, anything for you. I want to meet the man you speak so highly of."

"oh my gosh Nana thank you so so much! I'm so excited, wait what am I going to wear?" she dashes into her closet as Ella laughs, she hasn't seen her this excited since she was 8.

"I'm sure whatever you wear he will approve of!" She shouts so she will hear behind the closed door. "If he loves you the same way you love him, it won't matter what you look like!"

Regina walks out in jeans, boots, and a sweatshirt, wanting to be comfortable and warm at this time of night. She decides to keep her hair down, because Daniel loves it that way. She also has a bag that contains everything else she needs.

Ella has never seen her wearing clothes like that before, they don't sell anything of that style here in New Greenwich. She smiles and says "where did you find those clothes from?"

Regina places her hands in her pockets , rocking back and forth on her feet. She excitedly replies "Daniel bought them for me back in Dayton. Its way more comfortable than anything I wear here."

"Well then, let's get going!" Ella tells her excitedly.

They arrive in Dayton around 1am and park in the back of the apartment complex. They exit the vehicle and Regina slings her bag around her shoulder. "I can't wait for you to meet him Nana, you're going to love him." Her eyes are full of hope, shining brightly against the dull street. She looks at her Nana's wrist, it contains over 50 years of time. "You should cover that up, we don't want to attract any attention." Ella pulls down the sleeve of her shirt, the green glow slightly visible through the thin material, though no one will be able to notice. "People would do anything to get their hands on time like that. I'm lucky that mine is still frozen."

"that you are, my little one"

Regina links her arm around her Nana's and leads her up to his flat. Her smile impossibly big. She's so excited to see him, it has been over a week since she's been in his arms.

They reach his floor as she knocks on his door. They wait for a response but they get none. "He's probably asleep Nana, let me grab my key."

"You have a key?"

"I spend a lot of time here Nana, it's more of a home to me than New Greenwich" she tells her while the key in the lock turns.

This is all new for Ella, she has been through Dayton a handful of times over the past 200 years she has lived but has never stopped once.

The door clicks open as she quietly walks in. The kitchen light is on as usual, his bedroom door is closed. She breathes in the air, and it smells like him, smells like cologne and espresso. She motions for Ella to follow her in as she locks the door behind her. "I can't wait to see him Nana" she hugs her before setting down her bag.

"I'll be right here, don't have too much fun without me" she jokingly says as Regina heads towards his bedroom. Ella takes in the room she stands in. There's a brown three seater couch directly in front of her accompanied by a matching chair, the kitchen to her right. There's an opening in the wall that allows the kitchen to be seen. Bar stools line the opening and there's a bar top placed to hold whatever needed. Currently there's a plant, yesterday's mail, and a framed photo of Daniel and Regina. They look happy, they look like what everyone dreams of love to look like.

Ella walks forward as the curtains behind the couch are moving with the wind. She draws the curtain to the side and find the window ajar, not thinking much of it, the cold breeze feels good and it doesn't add to the electric bill. She looks ahead, the view is decent, just of the city line. She can barely see New Greenwich in the background, the glow of lights contrasting the stark night sky. Ella walks into the kitchen, sees a tube of Regina's lipstick on the counter, and another photo of them. This time they are in what seems like a park. It's of Regina while she was sitting on a swing laughing. Her head tilted back as she grasps the chains to keep herself from falling. Ella smiles, realizing how happy Daniel makes her, she really hasn't seen her happy in such a long time, and it warms her heart.

She hears Regina walk into Daniel's bedroom, she must be trying to wake him up without startling him. She smiles, thinking of their future, hoping Cora will accept them one day. Ella knows that what Regina has rivals her own love she has with her husband. Everything awes her, how such small things are needed to live; this small apartment providing a loving home for the two of them. She thinks of how much excess her family currently uses and feels guilty, the extra time being used on nonsense. The silence is abruptly broken when she hears a blood curdling scream coming from his room. Ella runs to where the noise came from, trying to piece everything together, her heart breaking at what presents itself.


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I own nothing and all mistakes are mine**

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Regina opens the door, eager to wake him up. There's a broad window to the left that lets in a little light from the moon. On the opposite wall lies the closet, its doors ajar; she can see some of her clothes hanging. The bed sits in the center up against the wall, where she finds Daniel laying face up on the left side. His right arm dangles over the edge, while his left one lays over his stomach. "Daniel, it's me!" she whispers eagerly. She runs her palms over her pants, her excitement building.

She walks up to his beside and shakes his shoulder, but he doesn't move. Her brows scrunch together in confusion, her heart starts to beat faster as her head slightly tips. "Daniel? Wake up." she says a bit louder, and she moves his shoulder again. Her hands start to shake, she isn't sure what to think. There is no sign of his chest moving, he isn't snoring like he usually does, so she hesitantly moves his left arm, afraid to see what is written on it. She picks up it up and turns it around, there's no green glow, just a gray 00:00:00:00. Her heart freefalls to her stomach, her face pales, tears blurring her vision and pouring out from her eyes. A scream erupts deep from deep within, her shoulders scrunch inwards, her hands cover her face, her whole body trembles. Her knees are ready to give out at any moment but she can't take her eyes off of him.

That's how Ella finds her when she runs into the room. Her senses don't seem to function, as she tries to take in the room, not sure what to expect.

"DANIEL!", Regina's voice has her coming back to reality. She processes everything and pieces it all together. Regina is screaming his name over and over, sobbing as her tears pour down her face, seeping into her sweatshirt. Her screams pierce the once peaceful night.

Regina's knees end up giving out, but her Nana's arm surround her before she can hit the ground. Before Regina knows it, she is being turned around and pressed into crook of her Nana's neck.

"Don't look Regina, please don't look." Ella brings her arms around Regina, pressing her hands over her own mouth, trying to contain her cries as she hears Regina mourn her true love. She holds her tightly, trying to provide any comfort she can, but knows that it is not enough. Regina's screams fill the air, whatever she is trying to say is inaudible. Its deafening, the combination of her sobs and screams, the shock of everything tearing away at her soul, stunning Regina to the spot.

Regina doesn't know how long she stands there clutching her Nana for dear life. She has stopped screaming, her voice doesn't want to cooperate, but her chest heavily heaves up and down. "Please Daniel, please don't leave me" she manages to weakly say. Moving out of Ella's embrace, she sits on the left side of the bed and grabs his arm to try to transfer her frozen time to him. Her head falls back in frustration and pain as it doesn't work. Anger becomes her, for not coming sooner, for not being able to transfer her time, for not being able to save him.

She turns around, their eyes meeting each other. Begging, her voice scratchy and raw, "Nana do something, please Nana" she cries out defeatedly. Ella freezes, she knows that he's gone, he has no time left. A silence befalls them, but she eventually chokes out "I'm sorry Regina, there's nothing we can do. He's-, He's gone. He's gone little one."

Tears still flow down Regina's cheeks, weakly, she asks again "Please Nana, please do something, bring him back, please Nana, I can't live without him." She hunches over, wrapping her arms around her middle, remaining still and rigid while she waits.

Ella approaches the other side of the bed and takes Daniels limp arm. Regina looks away, not wanting to see what happens. Ella twists their wrists together but nothing happens, she knew that already, she knows that once you are out of time that there is no way of getting more.

Ella reaches over, grasps her arm and whispers "I'm so sorry, little one".

Regina gasps in a large breath as her chest heaves more. She falls forward onto his chest, grasping the shirt that covers it, her head tipped to the side towards Ella.

"I'm going to call the police Regina, we can't leave him here." She places her hand on Regina's back and rubs up and down, knowing that it is not enough to ease her pain.

"Nana how did this happen! He had over 3 days of time when we last spoke! We were supposed to be together, we-"

She wipes Regina's tears with her fingers and soothes "Ssshhh, calm down little one, we need to get out of here." Regina pulls back, her eyes widening as she turns to look at his face. "We can't Nana, I can't leave him, I need-"

"Regina your name can't be on that police report. If your mother found out you were here, I don't even want to think what would happen."

Regina gasps her face scrunches yet again as hot tears slide down her face. "He can't be gone Nana, he can't be dead!"

Ella grabs her cell phone and calls the cops and hears someone pick up

"Dayton police."

Ella replies with the address and that there has been a death but abruptly hangs up.

"Hello? Ma'am? Hello? Who is this?" the detective replies to the empty phone line.

Ella puts her phone away and looks back to Regina. "Im going to grab anything that's yours, we don't need it being traced back to you. We only have a few minutes before the police arrive, we need to hurry."

Regina stares straight ahead at his peaceful face, placing her left hand on his cheek, hoping that this is all just be a nightmare that will be gone when she wakes. Meanwhile Ella runs around trying to find anything of hers, photos, makeup, clothes. She thinks she has all of it as she takes Regina's spare hand, pulling her out of her trance. "This is probably the last time you'll be able to say goodbye."

Regina hesitantly inches closer to him and looks down upon his face, her tears hitting it as she now cradles it. She feels the smoothness of his face, pressing their cheeks together as she whispers into his ear all the things she wishes she would have told him sooner. Ella steps in a minute later, sirens can be heard in the background "We need to go little one"

"No" Regina weakly replies "I can't leave him" she bites her bottom lip to try and keep it from trembling. She isn't speaking logically, her heart is clouding her judgement. Her heart says to stay here with him, but her mind tells her that her mother cannot find out that she was here.

Ella makes the decision to peel Regina off of him by circling her arms around her and pulling her up with all the strength she has. Regina instantly starts yelling, her hands claw at Ella's arms as she kicks her feet through the air to gain some leverage. "I'm sorry Regina," she tries to tell her "I can't let something happen to you too".

Regina protests until she is carried out of apartment, then sags against Ella's front, who places her on the ground. She guides her to the car, buckles her in and sets all of her stuff down in the back. "Go to sleep little one." Ella drives away just as the police cars pull into the lot.

"No" she whispers, her head lulls to the side to look at the occupied buildings they pass.

Ella glances over half an hour later, seeing the trails that her tears have marked her skin. She thinks that Regina has cried herself to sleep, too stubborn to actually choose to. It's too much, she thinks, it's too much for her to have to deal with.

* * *

Will and John arrive to the apartment complex, turn off the sirens and head inside to the address that was given to Robin. They knock on the door, and get no response. "Dayton police! Open up!" Will yells out.

When they get no response, John nods to Will, who kicks down the already unlocked door. They call into the apartment again, asking if anyone is there but are met with silence. They hesitantly scope out the place, but as soon as Will spots the body he yells over to John saying that it's clear. He turns his head to his shoulder where his radio lays and presses the button "we have a 10-45D. A male adult, out of time. John and I have scoped out the apartment. No sign of the caller. Over."

The radio relays back "sending over our team now. Make sure they take prints of the place. Over." The intercom beeps.

"Got it, we will look around again. Over."

"Hey john? You find anything?" he hears from the other room.

"Not at the moment Will. The caller is nowhere to be found, the door was unlocked, the window opened, and everything looks disheveled. From what it looks like, this death couldn't have been accidental."

Will spins around on his heels and meets Will, looking at the area that he had yet to see. "you should call Robin, this isn't something we can handle alone". He nods his head and pulls out his phone, waiting for the forensic team to arrive while he dials his boss' number.

After the whole apartment was photographed and dusted for prints, Daniels body was placed on a gurney and rolled into an ambulance. Robin steps out of his car and walks up to John and Will, who stand outside along everyone else in the parking lot. "You okay Robin? You don't look like your usual self."

"Ya, ya I'm fine" he says, trying to avoid the question. Will gives him a knowing look before Robin answers "it's almost been another year without her. Okay? You happy?" His friends quietly apologizes, and quickly change the subject.

"what happened here?" Robin says before he takes a deep breath and rubs the inner corners of his eyes, repressing everything so he can focus on the task at hand.

John looks at his chart and back up to Robin. "Dead body, male, 28, we found him out of time in his bed."

"I'm assuming there is an issue if you two called me?"

"Something is not right Rob, things were scattered in the apartment. The door wasn't locked. The body was found lying in bed, but the question is, would you go to bed if you knew that you didn't have enough time to wake up? We had forensics dust for prints, they will be logged into the computer by noon. I already got the footage from the security cameras just in case, we can look at it back at the station. The time of death was about 5 hours ago but the call came in just an hour prior. But why would they leave? Something just isn't right here."

"You're right, we need to inves-" Robins phone starts going off, he looks at the caller and answers it, raising his other hand to motion to John to hold his thoughts "I've got to take this."

"Captain?" Robin presses the phone to his ear, his face showing confusion, pivoting his feet away from all the noise. "But why-" he nods his head "just like that?" He brings a hand to his forehead "Captain something isn't right-", he audibly sighs, "alright, I'll let everyone know." He hangs up the phone and shouts to everyone outside the scene. "Pack it up, Captain Nottingham called. You may go home, thanks for coming out so late."

Will approaches him "why are we leaving?"

"I don't know. Nottingham said to stop what we are doing. He said the case is closed."

John turns around, shocked "closed? He isn't even here! We can't just leave, someone died! What is he thinking?"

"I don't know. But he's the Captain, so we will do what he says." He claps his hand on johns shoulder "good night you two, good work"

"Wait Rob! What about the evidence that was collected?"

He turns around to look at Will and John, "there's no reason to run it, just package it up with everything else and send it to storage. Captain says its closed, and as much as I am against it, there's nothing we can do boys." He turns back around and continues walking to his car, raising a hand in the air and waves "See you in the morning."


	8. Chapter 8

**I don't own anything and all mistakes are mine**

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Regina wakes up in her bedroom, glances to the right to look at the clock. It's 9am, and everything seems quiet for once. The sun is peeking through the curtains that line the windows, it seems peaceful. She pulls the thick comforter off her body, the slight chill in the air hitting her exposed skin. She approaches her desk, to look at her calendar to see what has been planned for her today. Her left hand flips the page, her gaudy wedding ring that's too large for her petite finger catches the light. It's a thick band, adorned with tiny diamonds along it, with a giant oval diamond set in the middle. She hates it, really, it's an ugly band that is prized for its price rather than its beauty. Ever since she unwillingly married Leopold 11 months ago, her days are filled with corporate dinners and meetings, being dragged along to make him look better. Unfortunately today is another one of those days.

She has mentally grown a lot over the past year, she's learned how to wear a mask to hide her emotions. She's played the perfect housewife, even though she's only 24. She's hosted dinners, made herself presentable, respected her husband, even though he may not respect her back. From afar it would seem that everything was perfect, just like her mother taught her to do. She is unrecognizable, practically a different person to those who had known her before. The loving girl turned into a devoid and impassive woman, rarely letting anyone see past her guarded walls.

She leaves her room and peeks into her husbands to ask when they are leaving, but thankfully he is not there. She asks one of the butlers where he has gone to, it turns out he left for the day, and will return back tonight, a last minute plan that arose. It turns out there is a car available, thank god there is. "Would you like someone to escort you somewhere Mrs. Blanchard?" He says, avoiding her gaze and looking out the window behind her.

"Please don't call me that, and No, no thank you, I can drive myself" she politely says. The walk back to her room is a joyful one, as she thinks of what she can do today. She runs her brush through her hair, which reaches just below her shoulders. Leopold had it cut right before the wedding. He had said that it was not professional enough, and the next day It was chopped off. She turns around and heads for the closet, finding a knee length flowy black dress. A black cardigan adorns her arms as well in case the weather is different in the other zone. She also takes off her wedding ring, today she wants to forgot about her life, forget about her marriage. Today she can finally visit Daniel's grave for the first time. She looks around the house, finds a time bank, and stashes It in her purse. She will need enough to pay the fees to get through the border of each time zone.

* * *

The drive is a little over 2 hours. When she gets there she parks the car and grabs a map of the cemetery. She has an idea of where he was buried, so she drives around until she finds it. As soon as she reaches the expected location, she quickly parks and gets out of the car. It's not hard to find, it is right on the edge of the street, saving her time from having to run around. She hesitantly approaches it, the reality of his death fully setting in. For so long she had no clue about whether the police had found his body, where he was buried, if he even had a service. She had secretly called cemeteries for months until she found the one that said they had a Daniel Porter. It was an odd feeling, he truly was dead, but he was taken care of, a mixture of sadness and gratitude.

She stands in front of the grave site, reading what is written on the stone, but then she crumbles before it. All of her tears saved up from the past year flood down her face, her guard completely lowered, her mask fully cracked. "I'm sorry Daniel, I'm so sorry Daniel" she repeats over and over. She places her hands on the headstone, and then rests her head, trying to get herself as close to him as possible. Her tears water the grass below her and the floodgate of her emotions opens for the first time since his death.

Robin walks up the hill towards Marian's grave. It's been over three years since that terrible night. During the first year he packed away all photos of her, couldn't move on seeing her face everywhere around the flat. Her family ended up taking her belongings, as he was in too much pain to process any of it.

The year after her death was the worst, he kept blaming himself for what had happened, somehow he found help to keep going. But he's in a better place now, he understands the tricks of the government: the poor is not meant to live forever.

Its midday on a Saturday, although it's slightly overcast, creating a chill in the air, He carries sunflowers with him, planning to drop them off. He sees the 3 weeks of time on his wrist, thinking of what he can do with it. He gets his paycheck next week, so he will have to deposit most of it in his time bank back at home. He gets closer and closer to the site, his eyes are glued to the stone with her name plastered neatly on it.

He stands firmly before it, "its me, Marian" he smiles and tips his head downward. "I miss you so much, more than you could ever know" he sheepishly says. "but I'm better than I was last year, I really am. Do you remember when I first came to visit? I was a soppy mess! But I still live in our apartment, I still water your plants" he slightly chuckles "I still have that piece of art on the wall, you know, the one I hate but you love." He lets out an audible laugh again "You'll always have a special place in my heart, Marian, always. I love you." With that places the flowers and stands, smooths his hand over his hair before whispering good bye, heading back down the hill. His car sits parked at the bottom, he purchased it a while ago vowing to never take the bus again.

In the distance he sees a woman, who kneels directly in front of a gravestone. Her hair falls around her face like a curtain, but her chest heaves back and forth, he can hear her sobs from quite afar. There is something that draws him to her, he can't walk away from her, but he also wants to give her privacy. He doesn't even know her yet he finds the need to comfort her. His feet draw him to her, slowly approaching so that he doesn't startle her. He notices her wrist, her time still frozen, and glances around to see if anyone is here with her. There is no one present except them two, so he hesitantly walks until they are about 5 feet apart. Robin crouches down so that he balances on the balls of his feet while his arms rest on his bent knees. "Excuse me Milady, are you okay?" he says softly.

Regina's head instantly rises from the stone and looks towards who approached her. Tears blur her vision, so she can't really see who it is. She instantly sits up on the legs that are folded beneath her. Her hand pulls back from the stone and to quickly wipe her face. Her head nods up and down in agreement.

As soon as she turns her head, he can't help but think how beautiful she is, even with the tears that drag her makeup down. Her porcelain skin, emotional eyes that he feels like he was born to gaze into, her hair framing her face. "Great, I just wanted to make sure you were okay"

Her eyebrows scrunch together, no one has ever shown this much kindness in her in the past year, especially not her husband.

He offers a smile and quietly says "Something, I don't know what, but something drew me to you" he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a tissue. He thought he was going to need them for himself, he definitely needed them last year, but today not so much. Besides, she obviously needs them more than him at the moment.

She gladly takes it, and wipes the makeup and tears that have left unattractive marks. When her vision clear she can finally take him in, noticing how handsome he is. Her eyes lock onto his, getting lost within their blue waters.

"I'm assuming it was someone close?" he nods towards the gravestone she sits in front of.

She gets confused, but realizes what he is talking about, and nods yes, tears forming again in her eyes.

He understands, he had a meltdown too the first time he visited Marian's grave. "May I?" he motions to the ground next to her, to which she nods again. As he sits beside her he continues to speak "I'm sure this-" he squints his eyes in order to read the name on the stone "-this Daniel Porter thanks you for coming, would tell you he loves you, and doesn't blame you for how he ended up here."

"at least that's what I tell myself when I come here to visit my Marian. It's helped me forgive myself for what happened to her."

She turns her head to look at the name of his headstone, hiccupping as she tries to recover from her meltdown.

"if he loved you the way you love him, I'm sure he would be happy that you are here" he glances over, noticing the date of his death. It's been a little bit under a year, yet it's obvious that she hasn't had the proper chance to process it.

The quiet girl still sits beside him, but hasn't said a word, but she hasn't run, so he continues talking to distract her from her emotions "marian was my fiancé who unfortunately passed away over 3 years ago. I've accepted it, processed it, although the first couple months were rough. But I'm in a better place now, and so is she" he smiles, looking into her eyes hoping that she will see that it will get better for her too.

Regina looks back towards the stone, his gaze too much. Her face scrunches together again as cries overtake her, making the hands that rise to cover her face tremble.

Robin doesn't know what to do, but before he has the chance to process anything he leans towards her and places his arms around her, drawing her in towards him. At first she startles, unaccustomed to comfort, especially from a stranger, but still leans into him, leans into the support that he provides. He sits in silence, trying to comfort her until she quiets down. A while later she pulls back and accepts another tissue from him. He stands up and takes a step back to give her space.

He reaches into his pocket and pulls out his business card, "If you ever need to someone to talk to, I can help"

She take the card and reads the name, Detective Locksley appears boldly in dark ink.

He fully smiles at her, revealing his dimples, and holds out his hand for her to take. His smile makes her blush, his dimples attracting him to her. She places her hand in his and he helps her stand.

"You can call me Robin, the card had to be professional" he chuckles before continuing. "Hopefully I'll be able to see you again? Maybe when you are feeling better?"

She opens her mouth but quickly shuts it before any words escape. Instead her head nods again.

"I'm going to get going now, but please, don't hesitate to call me, whether it's about Daniel or anyone else" and heads towards his car to go back home.

She turns back to Daniel's gravestone, whispers "goodbye" with a smile on her face and heads to her vehicle, feeling the weight of his death beginning to lift. Once she is in the car, she throws his business card in her purse. The key turns in the ignition as the hum of the car lulls her. Maybe it's the adrenaline talking, but she swears she can feel her heart slowly stitching back together.


End file.
